Two case reports of Wellens’ syndrome

Abstract

Wellens’ syndrome is characterised by particular changes in electrocardiogram (ECG) precordial lead T-waves accompanied by proximal stenosis of the left anterior descending (LAD) artery. Two cases of electrocardiographic changes associated with Wellens’ syndrome are presented here. Case 1, a 55-year-old female, was transferred to the First Affiliated Hospital of Xi’an Jiaotong University with intermittent and laborious angina pectoris. Her first ECG on admission revealed T-wave inversion in leads V1–V3 and biphasic T-waves in V4. Case 2, an 85-year-old female, presented with dyspnoea and paroxysmal chest pain. Her admission ECG displayed asymmetrical T-wave inversion in leads V1–V3, I, and aVL, and depressed ST segments in leads V2–V5. In this patient, drug-eluting stents were placed on a LAD artery lesion and right coronary artery occlusion. The potential of ECGs to aid decision-making in severe myocardial infarction is straightforward, particularly in patients with characteristic ECGs, however, Wellens’ syndrome has a wide spectrum of clinical manifestations and the ECG patterns may manifest itself persistently over a period of weeks. Therefore, ECG parameters should be combined with coronary angiography to confirm the presence of lesions.